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Athletes and Taxes

Boxing Superstar Manny Pacquiao plans on taking his next fight on November 24th to China because of the would-be near 40% federal income tax if the fight took place in the United States. Americans for Tax Reform reported that Manny will save $5.5 million by using a venue in Macau, China and $3.9 million in Singapore, Indonesia. This may appear to be greed, by leftists but it shows that in general people will migrate and invest in places that offer a higher incentive to conduct business. If the United States is to be viable option for future international sporting events, they’ll need to seriously consider lowering the federal income tax level to a rate that draws athletes in – not out.

Mike Tyson was at the peak of his career in the 90’s but in 2003 he filed for bankruptcyand is reportedly millions of dollars in debt to the IRS. Tyson claimed he’ll never be wealthy again and all his money goes straight to the federal government. It may appear that Pacquiao understands the financial woes from the former athlete or just simply doesn’t like paying taxes. (That’s far cry from what Mike Tyson thinks) Either way the reason why Manny Pacquiao has decided not to hold his boxing event in the United States is because of incentives to pocket more money.

Athletes are typically slammed with dozens of tax jurisdictions to file so even the smallest incentives can mean a lot. The quarterback for the New York Giants football team, Eli Manning, lives in New Jersey to avoid living in New York and paying a higher rate of taxes. Looking at incentives, It might be easy to see why Lebron James decided to play in Florida over New York because of Florida’s no state income tax policy and by picking Florida, James has reportedly saved $25 million. These athletes are given multi-million dollar contracts so it should be noted that the states with no income tax will naturally attract more athletes than those that have a high rate, same thing applies to why Pacquiao isn’t fighting in the US – taxes.

Even Phil Mickleson, PGA golfer, has suggested moving out of California because of the high taxes. This is simply people operating off incentives and choosing options that lead to less of a tax burden. At least in the case of the PGA golfer, the money stays in the United States. The United States will always hold host to the Super Bowl and World Series, but if boxers begin to realize they’ll make more money overseas, what impact will that have on the future of international sporting events in the United States?

This act might start the migration of the American left to China although the American left stands against wealth and prosperity there is the tendency of theirs to follow the money for example California. One way we can defeat China without firing a shot is to export elements of the American left. They have never known how to build a country but they sure know how to destroy a nation on the foundation of pride, envy, sloth, and ignorance.

Whenever President Obama is in a bind, he turns to his celebrity supporters. They prop him up when he’s wavering and help remind everyone how “cool” he is and that he's part of their team. With Obamacare implementation due to begin this fall, our government is bringing in the National Football League and its stars to bolster enrollment in the unpopular program.

The Marketplace Fairness Act would subject retailers to sales tax audits from 50 different states and tax laws of nearly 10,000 local tax authorities. Proponents of this bill claim that this levels the playing field between internet merchants, such as Ebay or Amazon with brick and mortar retailers like Walmart or Best Buy. Critics point out that it only boosts the tax bill for America’s consumers and allows state governments to tax businesses not within their jurisdiction.

Regulation of alcohol in the United States uses a three-tiered system that perpetuates big business’s control on the alcohol industry and has helped maintain a cartel-like hold on the marketplace ever since the end of alcohol prohibition in 1933.

Sit up and take notice, Washington – the future of America’s entitlements is unfolding before you in the form of the Illinois pension crisis. Illinois’ five state-funded pension systems were almost $100 billion too small to meet promised pension obligations, potentially affecting state employees, “down-state” teachers (Chicago teachers have their own pension problems), state university employees and even General Assembly members.

Detroit serves as a cautionary tale warning of long-term liberal leadership. As Michigan’s governor prepares a state takeover of the terminally troubled city, many blame the short-sighted policies of the local Democratic machine. To be sure, runaway pensions, red ink and union obstinance have helped hollow out the once-mighty Motor City.

Imagine, for a moment, a game show set. Wink Martindale is the host, because you need a pro to keep this thing on the rails. Contestants are picked at random from the studio audience to answer questions about the IRS, prepared by auditors and CPAs. Winners are awarded a tax rebate. Losers get the last 10 years of their income tax returns audited.

Hallie Kuperman loves to dance. But what she loves even more is sharing this passion with visitors to her social dancing club, the Century Ballroom.Hallie purchased the vintage dancing space 16 years ago, turning it into a Seattle institution. The Century Ballroom not only teaches swing, tango and the foxtrot, it also hosts cabarets and other live performances for an eclectic crowd of all ages. The club’s trendsetting owner has become a prominent and beloved figure in the community.

On February 5, the Congressional Budget Office released a report titled, "Macroeconomic Effects of Alternative Budgetary Paths". Full disclosure: even to us policy wonks, this report sounds a bit dry. Not exactly 50 Shades of Grey, if you know what I mean. But this report did contain some very interesting nuggets. Prepared at the request of the Chair of the Senate Budget Committee, Patty Murray, I'm certain that it came as a bit of a surprise.